


Moonlight

by imodyssey



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Rise of Kyoshi, The Shadow of Kyoshi
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Kissing, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:47:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25642321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imodyssey/pseuds/imodyssey
Summary: Set after the Shadow of Kyoshi*so spoilers obviously don't read if you haven't finished it*In the aftermath of the fight in Yokoya, Kyoshi wonders about her future, while Rangi is afraid she is still stuck in the past.
Relationships: Kyoshi & Rangi (Avatar), Kyoshi/Rangi (Avatar)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 115





	Moonlight

While the Avatar’s mansion in Yokoya had halfway been destroyed by the battle between Kyoshi and Yun, most of it was still habitable. Rangi pleaded with Kyoshi to take a week off, knowing the emotional toll that wracked her after the death of their friend. It saddened her beyond measure; the once quiet severant girl whose only problem was getting bullied in town by the local kids, now had the weight of the four nations and over 9000 years of Avatars on her shoulders.

“I talked to Yangchen,” Kyoshi said on the way back to the Avatar’s mansion. “I wonder what actions I will take that will cause problems for the next Avatar, and the one after that. Maybe even the one after that too.”

“What do you mean?” Rangi asked.

“People worship Yangchen like she was a god who did nothing wrong, even I had those thoughts, but she was just as flawed as everyone else,” Kyoshi rubbed the back of her neck, as if bashful of the praise her past life receives. “She made decisions that benefited humans more than spirits and that ended up causing problems for Kuruk. Which in turn left problems for me.”

Kyoshi realized that in her nervousness she began outpacing Rangi who was strolling along behind her on her crutch. “Kyoshi, you’re two years into being the Avatar, you can’t be thinking like that,” Rangi said, slipping her arm around Kyoshi’s bicep as they walked to steady herself. “Everyone has flaws. There’s a lot of choices you’re going to have to make in your life, but I’m going to be there with you every step of the way.”

Even in her injured state, Rangi was still determined to walk alongside her. After moving to Yokoya, she had found a friend, and later, something more; protecting the girl she loved gave her a new purpose.

“I must be the luckiest Avatar ever then.” Kyoshi grinned.

“Oh stop it, you’ll make me blush.” Rangi said, playfully swatting Kyoshi’s leg with her crutch.

They continued on in silence, Rangi occasionally squeezing Kyoshi’s arm. What worried her was how well Kyoshi seemed to be holding up. Having buried Yun over an hour ago, she seemed to be in unusually good spirits. Maybe she was distracted by her conversation with Yangchen, or perhaps the realization that their friend was truly gone still hadn’t really hit her yet. The two of them had cried for several days over the loss of their friend, and Rangi still expects the smiling boy to greet them as they walk into the mansion.

“You know, for someone who’s worried about her future actions, what are you planning on doing next?” Rangi asked.

Kyoshi frowned and gave a low hum, “I have plans to keep an eye on Fire Lord Zoryu for a while. I want to make sure he keeps up his end of the bargain.” 

“Oh? Are we going back to the Fire Nation?”

“No, I decided to send a messenger.” Kyoshi glanced at Rangi and saw the scowl on her face wondering what she could have meant. Before she could ask about it, Kyoshi cleared her throat and continued. “I also have some unfinished business in Ba Sing Se. I left in quite a hurry when I got the letter saying you were back in the Fire Nation.”

“I heard rumors of the Avatar causing quite a ruckus in Ba Sing Se,” Rangi smiled. When she was away with her mother, word spread fast about the new Avatar around the globe. Earth Kingdom sailors brought trading goods and news to the Northern Water Tribe every few weeks about Kyoshi’s new feats. “I heard she has the daoife running with their tails between their legs.”

“I heard she’s about to squish them like a bug once and for all,” Kyoshi muttered, opening the gate to the Avatar’s mansion.

The silence was a ghost of what the mansion once was, ministers and nobles used to be in and out with gifts trying to gain the favor of the Avatar, with servants trying their hardest to stay out of the way. Now it stood somewhat in shambles from the battle and previous neglect, but not entirely empty.

Kyoshi’s strange Team Avatar she assembled has been set up in the mansion. Kirima and Wong didn’t have much of a choice in leaving since they still couldn’t walk, Jinpa enjoyed Kyoshi’s company as well as working alongside her, Hei-Ran still needed treatment from Atuat as well as Rangi. While Hei-Ran wouldn’t admit it out loud, she deeply enjoyed Atuat’s company. These thoughts tugged at Kyoshi’s heart, her strange found family. She just wished Kelsang was here to experience it.

Kyoshi still ached for Kelsang. He had given her his entire world and he was repaid by a swift death at the hands of his former friend. In a way, that was no different than what she had done to Yun. Tears began to form in her eyes. She blinked them away before anyone could notice. The mood in the mansion had already been heavy today, and she didn’t want to dampen it further with her own personal turmoil.

\---------------

It wasn’t often that Rangi woke in a cold sweat from nightmares, but it had been happening a lot recently. She reached around for the most solid thing in her life only to find that it wasn’t there. Kyoshi’s side of the bed was cold. Rangi immediately became irritated. She had told Kyoshi before that it was okay to bother her at any time of the day if she felt troubled, even if it meant waking her up at ungodly hours. This did confirm one thing, Kyoshi was not holding up at all as well as Rangi thought she was.

Rangi stretched only to wince halfway through at the sharp pain shooting through her back. A bead of sweat rolled down her forehead. While Atuat had healed the remainder of any internal damage, Rangi still suffered from dull aches and throbs, and the occasional phantom pain of the earthen spike tearing into her back. She slid off the bed and padded to the door peering out into the hallway. Dark and empty. The oil lamps had been extinguished hours ago. Slowly closing the door, Rangi made her way through the mansion with a ball of fire in her hand to light the path. 

Kyoshi sat cross legged in the middle of the garden. It had certainly seen better days, and with a little hard work and care, it could bloom again into what it once was. Rangi moved to sit across from Kyoshi. The cool night air felt good against her skin, and Rangi marveled at the full moon, the sky blanketed in stars. She thought Kyoshi looked beautiful in the moonlight, her eyes closed, features softened, and face freckled like the night sky. Rangi closed her eyes and put her fists together, imitating the girl across from her. She doubted Kyoshi was in the spirit world with so much going on in her head. Rangi knew she had to be patient with Kyoshi, she would speak when she felt she was ready.

“I keep seeing his face,” Kyoshi spoke softly. “Before we went to the old mine near the Xishaan Mountains, he told me that if he wasn’t the Avatar, he would have been glad it was me. But when Father Glowworm confirmed it was me, I saw his spirit completely shatter. He lied to me because he was so convinced that it was him. I keep seeing that moment over and over again in my head.”

Rangi remained silent. “And now,” Kyoshi continued, “I see the look of shock on his face as I froze his heart and lungs. The moment he died. What would he have said if he could say anything at all in that moment? ‘Ah Kyoshi you betrayed me once again.’ What would Kelsang say? ‘There was no other way. You did what was right.’ But was it right? I could have done more for him. I could have helped him. He could still be here.”

Rangi opened her eyes to see Kyoshi’s still closed, but silent tears streamed down her cheeks. She wasn’t sure if the last bit she said had been about Yun or Kelsang. Rangi put her hands over Kyoshi’s.

“We can’t worry ourselves with wondering what could have been Kyoshi,” she said. “I ask myself a lot of things, like what if my father was still around? What if my grandfather hadn’t fallen ill and became the adult chaperone for Kuruk? Would my mom still have gotten involved with the Avatar? Would I have been put on the path that I’m on now? What if my mother had died from the poison? What if she couldn’t be saved? I ask myself a lot of things, but I think what we should be doing is asking ourselves ‘What can we do now to make the future better?’”

Kyoshi inhaled deeply, but otherwise remained silent. Rangi had made a point, wondering about how the past could have been different was weighing on her heart. She opened her eyes, Rangi’s golden iris’s glittered in the moonlight. She held her breath. Why hadn’t she realized it before? She spent so much time dwelling on the past, that she forgot what was, quite literally, right in front of her. While she may have lost Kelsang and Yun to the past, Rangi was her past, present, and future.

“You asked me earlier today what I had planned for the future.” Kyoshi whispered, taking Rangi’s hands and placing them between her own. “I have plans for us. And not just us. People like us. People shouldn’t have to hide who they love. I don’t hide that I love you, but I can probably get away with it here because I’m the Avatar. Other people in the Earth Kingdom? Not so much.”

“The Air Nation is really the only place that accepts our love without a second thought. The Fire Nation barely tolerates it.” Rangi frowned, feeling Kyoshi squeeze her hands.

“I’m sure with enough convincing they could come full circle. As for the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom...I might have to beat it into them.” Kyoshi grinned.

Rangi knew it was a jest, maybe, and Kyoshi only grinned wider at the scowl on her face. Rangi removed one of her hands, using the sleeve of her nightgown to wipe the remainder of Kyoshi’s tears from earlier. Leaning forward she kissed Kyoshi as soft as the moonlight.

“Well, whatever you do, I will be by your side every step of the way.”

**Author's Note:**

> WOW. This is the first time in my life I've ever written a fanfiction. In fact its the first time I've written something in almost 4 years that isn't a school paper. The beginning feels a bit rushed to me because the only thing in my head while writing it was the second part which is what I wanted to get to. Oops. And I would love criticism if anyone has any. Thank you for reading!


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